The University of San Carlos hosted the Supreme Court of the Philippines’ launch of the Ethics Caravan for the Proposed Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability (CPRA) at the SAFAD Theater in Talamban Campus on September 14, 2022.
Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo led the Ethics Caravan which introduces proposed updates to the 34-year-old Code of Professional Responsibility (Code) as part of the SC’s efforts to “craft a modern, relevant, and responsive guide for lawyers’ conduct.”
Aside from the CJ Gesmundo, Justices Amy C. Lazaro-Javier, Samuel H. Gaerlan, Maria Filomena D. Singh, Rodil V. Zalameda, Jhosep Y. Lopez, Jose Midas P. Marquez, and Antonio T. Kho, Jr. also attended the launch. Retired Associate Justice Edgardo L. delos Santos, the first Carolinian Supreme Court Justice, graced the occasion together with Justices of the Court of Appeals Visayas Station.
The five-leg Ethics Caravan is a series of consultations that seek to “incorporate in the CPRA the underlying ethical considerations of a technology-driven Judiciary and legal profession in line with the Supreme Court’s Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations 2022-2027.”
Judges, lawyers, IBP chapters, as well as government entities and organizations, members of the academe, and the public are given the opportunity to share their suggestions and inputs which will then be submitted to the Supreme Court En Banc for its review and consideration.
The blended event was also streamed live via Zoom.
by Syrine Gladys Podadera